This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 771,625 filed Sept. 3, 1985 which is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 746,673 filed June 20, 1985, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,620,459.
The present invention relates to a wrench and more particularly to a speed socket wrench which provides a compact and reliable construction which is best suited for use in places which are ordinarily inaccessible and where space is limited.
The present invention provides a wrench which will enable inaccessible nuts to be manipulated without difficulty, which can be easily and quickly adjusted and which is not subject to breakage or loss of working ability. By the present invention there is provided a wrench that is strong, durable, simple and inexpensive in construction and well adapted to the use for which it is intended.
The sidewinder wrench of the present invention is a speed socket wrench which employs a bevel gear and pinion set, each of which is attached to a shaft. The bevel gear is attached through its shaft to a T-handle and the pinion set is attached to the drive mechanism.
In one embodiment, a pair of bushings are employed on each shaft. The gear shaft, and thus the pinion shaft and drive, can be revolved by turning the T-handle while holding the wrench casing. In one embodiment, an inner and outer cap are located on the exterior of the casing adjacent the point at which the drive shaft exits the casing. These caps cooperate to provide a locking mechanism. In the locked position of the caps, the wrench can be employed as would any conventional wrench. In the unlocked position, the T-handle is rotated by hand, resulting in revolution of the drive shaft. The gears of the present wrench turn freely in either direction and gear ratios and sizes can be varied with wrench size. PG,4
In another embodiment, a reversing ratchet is employed, including a ratchet wheel which engages the drive shaft and also including means for locking the ratchet wheel so as to prevent rotation of the drive shaft.
The T-handle employed with the present wrench may be advantageously constructed with an L-shaped end member, having the shorter leg of the end member extending outwardly at an angle such as about 45 degrees and with the end member being pivotable at its center about the main shaft located in the handle of the wrench so as to form an angle such as about 45 degrees on either side of the main shaft.
The sidewinder wrench of the present invention has been found to substantially reduce the work required to remove nuts or bolts, as compared with conventional wrenches. The present wrench uses mechanical advantage in two ways rather than one way as in the case of the previous wrenches: (1) to provide torque to break or tighten the nut or bolt; and (2) to provide speed, in that with the sidewinder wrench, one turn of the handle results in two turns of the nut or bolt, whereas with existing wrenches, one turn provides 3/4 or less turn of the nut or bolt.
Additional features of the wrench of the present invention include the following: (1) requires less room to operate than conventional wrenches; (2) especially effective on long bolts because of the large number of repetitions or on bolts where there is minimal resistance because other wrenches require resistance; and (3) since the wrench handle does not move, the wrench socket does not tend to slip off the nut or bolt.